


Ciphus Cane

by Mari (chamarileon)



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Aged up characters, Deals, M/M, Not completed, ciphus cane is of my creation, might add smut later idk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-04
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-14 16:31:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9193373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chamarileon/pseuds/Mari
Summary: Mabel is stuck at home for a couple weeks, the grunkles are out exploring, Bill is back in Gravity falls with a deal to make, and Dipper agrees.





	1. Wanna Make a Deal?

**Author's Note:**

> Hello guys! I've been kinda off with my writing for months now but I finally created a plot and story I enjoy! As of now, the moment I write this, the story is NOT complete, so chapters will be out every two weeks to ensure I have time to write and edit each chapter whilst dealing with my health and school. Thank you for reading! xx - Mari

“What?! I can’t go?” Mabel cried out.

Her parents looked at her apologetically. “I’m sorry, but you can’t go until you do this class. If you don’t do it over the summer, you’ll be held back a year,” they gently reminded her.

“This isn’t fair! I want to go hang out with Grunkle Stan and Ford! What about Dipper? You’re just going to separate us?!” she questioned, desperate to leave for Gravity Falls.

Dipper winced in guilt upon hearing this. “Mabel, I know it’s hard, but all you have to do is finish that class and then head over. I’m sure you can do a couple weeks without me.”

“No! This isn’t fair!”

Their parents sighed, becoming frustrated.

“Please, Mabel. Just this once? Next year is our last year, so you should just get it out the way and we can graduate together,” the male twin pleaded.

Mabel wiped at her eyes, catching any tears before they could fall. “Fine. But You have to promise to hang out with me a lot when I get there!”

He smiled in reply. “I promise I will.”

The next 24-hours were spent packing and saying goodbye. Dipper waved, a bit sad to leave his twin, as he sat on the bus to take him to Gravity Falls. The bus took off, leaving him to the hands of sleep.

His dreams were mostly of memories containing Mabel and Waddles, but of course the occasional “Pine Tree” made it’s way in. Each time he’d push away the thought that he’d heard it. Dipper had learned he would spend his life dealing with the trauma of Weirdmageddon, unlikely to ever truly forget the events. But that was years ago. Now he and Mabel were seventeen with their birthday in a few months. They could only hope things would eventually seem normal again.

By this point he was awake, with too many thoughts for his liking. His stop came up shortly after, where he was greeted by both Stan and Ford. “Dipper!” Stan greeted, hugging the male immediately.

The trio headed towards the Mystery Shack to let Dipper settle down.

“So where’s your sister? And the bacon? Err, pig, I mean,” Stan asked after a moment.

Dipper continued walking with the two as he replied. “Mabel kinda failed a class, so she has to retake it this summer. She’ll be up here in a few weeks though.”

“Oh, I see. Well, go on up and put your stuff down in the attic,” Stan stated, patting him on the back.

Dipper made his way upstairs, vaguely realising the two were talking quietly. Something about lonely? He shrugged it off, placing his bags down on the bed. He made his way back downstairs, only to find his grunkles at the table.

“Come here for a second, would you?” Ford asked, motioning Dipper over.

He shuffled over, taking a seat across from them. “What is it?” he asked in concern.

“We, uh.. We actually had planned to go on a trip for a while. Some freaky stuff has been happening over in Wyoming. But if you’d be lonely, without Mabel and all, we’d be willing to stay,” Stan explained, occasionally glancing over to his brother.

“Oh,” Dipper managed out. “If you’ve been planning it for a while, don’t let me stop you. I could do some of my own investigating anyways, or something,” he said with a small smile.

“Are you sure? Cause we don’t have to go.”

“I’m sure,” he reiterated.

They left the morning after, leaving Dipper to do whatever he pleased. At the very least Soos would be taking care of the Mystery Shack a few times a week, so he wouldn’t be stuck doing that job. He figured he’d help out a bit though. Several days passed like any other day. It wasn’t until he heard a knock on the door that he actually did anything aside from reading or research.

Dipper hopped off the bed and made his way to the first floor. The knocking continued, causing him to yell out, “One moment!”

He unlocked the door and pushed it open with his hand. “Hello–”

“Hiya, Pine Tree!”

Dipper froze as anger slowly bubbled up into his throat.

It had been years since he’d heard that voice; Years since he’d felt so infuriated. Bill Cipher was meant to be gone. He was meant to be locked away, never to be seen again. Why in the name of all things strange was he standing in front of Dipper, looking like nothing had ever happened? Better yet, why was he in the form of a human, complete with bright yellow hair, a tiny top hat, an eyepatch, and a shorter stature than himself?

Dipper’s eyes narrowed sharply. “What are  _ you  _ doing here? How did you escape?”

The man simply chuckled at the questions. “The question is ‘why’, not what or how.”

“What?”

Bill leaned against the side of the door. “It means you’re asking the wrong questions, Pine Tree. You should be asking why I’m here. But telling you wouldn’t be any fun,” he drawled out, glancing to his nails.

“Leave. Now,” Dipper growled in reply.

“Ah, ah. That wouldn’t be any fun. I am here with a purpose after all.”

Dipper went to shut the door, only to be stopped by one hand pressing against the door and another hand gripping his wrist.

“Let go!”

“Make a deal with me.”

Dipper’s face scrunched up in horror. “Why the fuck would I? You terrorised my family, this town, me!”

A sigh escaped the lips of the slightly shorter male. “Bother, bother. It’s all in the past! Now listen to my offer carefully. I want help finding the Ciphus Cane. Moreover, I want somewhere I can safely return to. Meaning.. _here_ ,” he explains, eyes flickering to the inside of the Mystery Shack.

“Help you find a cane? And let you stay here? Are you crazy? Wait, no, you are,” Dipper spat out before continuing. “I would never make this deal with you. Did you think I was stupid enough to think making a deal with a demon was a good idea, _especially_ after he destroyed people’s lives?”

Bill sighed exasperatedly, more dramatic than needed for the effect. “Well, I suppose I’ll just have to burn this place down.. You guys don’t need it, right?”

“The Mystery Shack can easily be rebuilt.”

“Oh, no.. I meant the town,” Bill hummed, holding one hand full of blue fire up to demonstrate his point.

Dipper grit his teeth immediately.

“But hey, in the end it really is just your choice. I suppose I have some work to do. See ya, Pine Tree,” he said, turning and walking away from the building.

He smiled after taking eight steps. On the ninth, Dipper’s voice called out. “Wait!”

Bill smirked, slowly turning around. “Yes, Pine Tree?”

Dipper’s eyes turned downcast while his grip on the door tightened. He mumbled out a reply.

“I can’t hear you.”

“I said, fine. I’ll make the deal. But I have my own ends of it,” he stated flatly.

Bill nodded a bit, slowly walking back over. “And they are?”

“For one thing, no possession. At any time. Not okay,” Dipper said with a hard glare. “Two, you’re not to invade my dreams whatsoever. Three, if I tell you not to go somewhere, don’t do it. Meaning, stay out of rooms if I tell you to. And finally, you cannot drag me out whenever you want. I have stuff to do as well.”

The shorter nodded, concealing the smallest of smirks. “Of course. So we have a deal?”

Dipper thrust out his hand in reply, not trusting his words. Bill immediately placed his hand in his, a blue flame illuminating both of their faces.

“It’s a deal.”


	2. Statue's Gem

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter! And it's on time like I promised! I better get to writing the next few chapters.. /sweats nervously/ Feel free to contact me on my tumblr (tortoisemother))! Thank you for reading! xx - Mari

By the second day of the deal, Dipper had learned that no news was good news, but not in the traditional sense. No news meant he was left alone, and that was happening rarely. Just when Dipper thinks he has peace and quiet, Bill is there chattering away, just getting enjoyment out of annoying the living hell out of him. But this quiet had lasted for at least five hours. It was nice and–

“Hey, Pine Tree!”

And nevermind.

“What?” Dipper groaned, looking up from his book.

“I got a lead on the CC.”

“The what?”

Bill sighed dramatically. “The Ciphus Cane. Honestly, how did you not get that?”

“Oh, maybe because I don’t care enough to actually make up names for it?” Dipper shot back.

“Fine, whatever. Anyways, there’s supposed to be some kind of shrine of me?”

Dipper squinted in confusion for a moment before understanding, “Oh, you mean the rock of you?”

“Shrine, but yes.”

“It’s not a shrine, Bill.”

“Uh, it clearly is,” he argued.

Dipper put a bookmark in his book, setting it down on his bed. “Anyways, what about it? How is it a lead?”

Bill began pacing as he explained. “There’s this rumour, per say, that there’s some kind of gleam that’ll appear on the rock if you’re looking hard enough. No one has found it yet, but it’s worth trying.”

Dipper sighed, conceding to Bill’s idea. “Alright, let me get ready then.”

“Great! I’ll be waiting by the door,” Bill said, slipping out of the room immediately after.

The male hopped off his bed after a moment, going over to the closet and slipping on a jacket. He grabbed his bag, doing a quick once-over to ensure he had everything before heading downstairs. He met up with the demon by the door, as he said they would.

“Ready to go?”

“As ready as I ever will be,” Dipper muttered.

The two immediately set off into the woods. As far as Dipper could recall, it’d be an hour walk at the very least. He figured the townsfolk didn’t want a constant reminder of the horrors that occurred that summer, so of course they’d place it far enough away for people to look, but to not be constantly reminded. Glad for the decision, Dipper could only be a bit distraught, having to return to see it with the one on the stone.

“–inking about?”

Dipper snapped out of his thoughts, furrowing his eyebrows. “Huh?”

“What’re you thinking about?” Bill repeated.

“Can’t you just read my mind?” he questioned.

Bill’s face stayed unreadable as he answered. “Sure, but what fun is that when I can make conversation?”

“Right. Whatever. Making that deal doesn’t mean I want to talk to you,” Dipper deadpanned, staring straight ahead.

“Okay, kid. But say, you’re what? Seventeen now?”

Dipper closed his eyes momentarily, breathing out in annoyance. “Yes, Bill. I am.”

“Coolio.”

The walk was awkward to say the least. It was clear the demon wanted to keep talking, but he’d be really pushing his luck if he tried continuing the conversation; So in the end, it was an awkward mix of  _ knowing  _ Bill wanted to say something while Dipper had nothing to say. The two continued in silence, Dipper easily keeping his distance. Finally, after a grueling hour and a quarter, they arrived to the Cipher rock.

“Alright, this is it,” Dipper motioned to the rock.

“Wow, it really does look like me!” the shorter grinned, scanning over it.

Dipper rolled his eyes, crossing his arms.

“Stop rolling your eyes, kid. Now help me look!” Bill ordered, beginning to circle the statue.

Dipper sauntered over, glancing over it. Bill was right; It did look just like him. Maybe not how he looks currently, since the statue certainly doesn’t have an eyepatch, nor hair, nor a human body for that matter. Instead it looked like Bill, the triangle dream demon. The one who terrorised himself and his sister. The one who nearly destroyed the world. The one who was meant to be locked away. Why wasn’t he still? Dipper glanced up to watch him. Bill was intently focused on the statue.

Dipper took a deep breath, glancing back down to keep searching. “How did you escape?”

The demon’s eyes snapped up and he raised an eyebrow. “When I was locked away? Easily. Do you really think that someone can have their memories return after having their mind wiped clean  _ without  _ the being inside finding a way out? The answer is no.”

“Then how long have you been out? Since his memory came back?”

Bill let his eyes fall downcast. “No,” he replied, his tone telling Dipper the conversation was over.

He let the conversation end without a fuss. It wasn’t like he could expect Bill to actually tell him everything when he himself kept his mouth closed.

The two looked. And they looked. And they looked some more.

The younger of the two groaned out. “We’ve been looking for hours! There obviously isn’t anything here, so let’s go back.”

“No, no; I’m  _ sure  _ there is something here. We just have to find it,” Bill muttered out with a small frown.

“No, I’m done. I’m heading back. See ya,” he said.

“Pine Tree, wai–”

Suddenly the ground rumbled, shaking slightly. Dipper turned around, complete bewilderment in his eyes. A flash of blinding white light passed over and through the statue before pushing the back of the statue open.

“What did you do?”

“I said Pine Tree?” the demon mumbled, clearly as surprised.

“Well, what’s in the statue?”

Bill crouched down, one hand holding onto the statue for balance. He reached into the hole, pulling out a sphere-shaped gemstone. He turned it over, face unreadable.

“Yellow Sphalerite.”

“What?” Dipper asked.

“The gem. It’s a yellow sphalerite. It has the Greek meaning of ‘treacherous’,” Bill stated, standing up as the statue’s backing closed.

Dipper scoffed slightly. “How fitting.”

Bill glanced up with an annoyed expression and hissed, “Don’t forget you agreed to make a deal with me, the oh-so treacherous one.”

Dipper stared angrily before turning around and stomping back the way they came.

By the time they returned home it was becoming dark out, and the younger’s patience with Bill for the day was completely and utterly gone.

“I’ll be in my room. Don’t bother me,” he grit out, heading up the stairs for a well-deserved break.

Bill stayed there, staring up for a minute. He sighed, muttering “teenagers” under his breath, before heading to the guest room. The demon quietly pulled out the chair to the desk and took a seat, carefully taking the gem out of his pocket. He turned it over in his hands, glancing over the sphere with a watchful eye. Despite being seemingly bright, the sphalerite had small cloudy veins running through it. Maybe Dipper was right. Maybe it was fitting, and maybe it was a clue to what he was looking for.

He sighed, feeling his eyes begin to droop. Oh, right. Humans need sleep. He pushed his chair back, lifting himself out of it, only to flop down onto the bed. Nothing seemed clear. All he knew was that he needed that cane, and he needed it as soon as possible. Bill let his eyes fall closed, drifting off into sleep. The answers will come with time.


	3. Updates ; NOT A NEW CHAPTER

I am so, so, so, so, SO sorry I haven't been updating this. I just kind of lost my inspiration for like ?? Everything ?? Things are tough in my personal life with my health and events going on. I promise I have been working on the next chapter (at a snail's pace), and it **will** be posted, but I'm just not in the best place to be writing a ton. Sorry I couldn't keep my schedule like I wanted to! If you want to contact me or send me anything (etc etc), my tumblr is [tortoisemother](http://tortoisemother.tumblr.com). – Mari xx


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